Is Your Brand Relevant? The 5 Laws of Cultural Relevance
Most brands confuse being known with being relevant.
We spoke to over 1,000 young people to find out what cultural relevance actually means to them. Through an in-depth participant survey and 2 intimate focus groups, we got raw, unvarnished opinions on the brands earning a real place in young people’s lives, and the ones missing the mark.
In this session, we'll share what we heard and unpack the gap between brand awareness and cultural relevancy, through 5 essential laws.
Expect honest insights, uncomfortable truths, and a clearer answer to the question every brand should be asking right now: Are we actually relevant, or just recognised?
Sophie Derham is an Insights Manager with a passion for understanding youth culture that goes beyond just being chronically online and a zillennial herself. With experience spanning market research, content creation, and community engagement at Word on the Curb, she specialises in capturing perspectives in a meaningful way, and turning that insight into actionable strategy for brands. She manages the Curbsights Suite, a selection of insights tools aimed at getting people close to their audience. Having previously headed up the Curb Community of 20,000 members, she’s an expert at accessing, engaging and understanding niche audiences, with a specialism in Gen Z.
Sophie’s work sits at the intersection of data and storytelling - for brands such as Pinterest, Coppafeel, Mind and Etsy -bridging the gap between what young people think and what businesses need to know.
Mabinty Taylor-Kamara is an Insights and Editorial Producer driven by a deep curiosity for youth culture, creativity, and social change. With a background across copywriting, cultural programming, and audience research, she specialises in translating emerging youth perspectives into compelling narratives and actionable insight for brands.
Mabinty manages communications and leads the youth voice at Word on the Curb. She writes thought pieces that blend qualitative and quantitative research, helping brands clearly understand how young people think, feel, and engage.
With a foundation in community engagement and facilitation, Mabinty is particularly passionate about ensuring young people's perspectives are represented authentically in brand strategy.